Building erection means



Dec. 15, 1970 o o ETAL BUILDING ERECTION MEANS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June 5, 1968 //v VISA/7'01? JORGE Paw/0 JOSfPl/ 6. Men 714 I wk 7 M firmwa e 5 Dec. 15., 1976 RQMQ ETAL BUILDING ERECTION MEANS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed June 5, 1968 //Vl /V7'0P ORGE Rama By JOSEPH 6. K24 TKr United States 3,546,831 Patented Dec. 15, 1970 US. Cl. 52-115 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A building erection means including a wheeled frame means having a boom means pivotally secured thereto. The boom means is comprised of a plurality of telescoping boom members which are selectively and successively raised by a hydraulic cylinder means positioned therein. The upper boom member is adapted to be secured to the underside of the roof structure of the building and the boom means is progressively raised to facilitate the attachment of the wall sections to the roof structure.

Buildings such as circular storage bins are difficult to erect due to the fact that the cone-shaped roof structure is ordinarily assembled first with the plurality of wall sections being secured thereto as the roof structure is moved upwardly by some makeshift means such as a tractor loader or the like. The attachment on the forward end of the tractor loader is usually positioned over the roof structure and attached by some means to the roof structure to facilitate the vertical movement of the same. This arrangement is completely unsatisfactory due to the fact that the size of the tractor loaders is not sufficient to erect anything other than a small building together with the fact that the building is extremely unstable during the erection thereof by this method. The use of the tractor loader is also unsatisfactory due to the difficulty in exactly positioning the building on the proper location on the footings.

Therefore, it is a principal object of this invention to provide an erection means for a building.

A further object of this invention is to provide. a building erection means including a wheeled frame means having a telescoping boom means operatively secured thereto.

A further object of this invention is to provide a build ing erection means which is extremely stable and safe to use.

A further object of this invention is to provide a building erection means which is easily transported.

A further object of this invention is to provide a building erection means which is positioned beneath the underside of the roof structure during the erection of the building.

A further object of this invention is to provide a building erection means including a pair of Wheel members which are movable towards each other to facilitate the removal of the means from the interior of the building after the erection is completed.

A further object of this invention is to provide a building erection means which permits the building to be exactly positioned on the footings.

A further object of this invention is to provide a building erection means which is economical of manufacture, durable in use and refined in appearance.

These and other objects will be apparent to those skilled in the art.

This invention consists in the construction, arrangements, and combination of the various parts of the device, whereby the objects contemplated are attained as hereinafter more fully set forth, specifically pointed out in the claims, and illustrated in the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is an elevational view of the. erection means being transported by a vehicle;

FIG. 2 is an elevational view of the erection means having the supported ring secured to the upper boom member;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the erection means illustrating the roof sections being assembled on the supporting ring;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary perspective view of a portion of the supporting ring;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view as seen along line 4-4 of FIG. 5;

FIG. 6 is an elevational view of the erection means positioned within the building which is being erected;

FIG. 7 is a view similar to FIG. 6 except that the building is shown in a more completed condition;

FIG. 8 is a top view of the erection means, the broken lines indicating the position to which the Wheel members may be moved;

FIG. 9 is a fragmentary elevational view of the erection means, the broken lines indicating the position to which the boom means is moved for transport purposes;

FIG. 10 is a longitudinal fragmentary sectional view of the boom means;

FIG. 11 is an elevational View of the erection means with the boom members in an extended position;

FIG. 12 is a fragmentary elevational view of a portion of the boom means; and

FIG. 13 is a schematic view of the hydraulic circuitry of the erection means.

The building erection means of this invention is generally designated by the reference numeral 10 and generally includes a wheeled frame means 12 having a boom means 14 pivotally secured thereto. Frame means 12 includes a hollow tube 16 at its rearward end having axle members 18 and 20 slidably extending into opposite ends thereof. Wheels 22 and 24 are rotatably secured to the outer ends of axle members 18 and 20 which are selectively maintained in various positions of their slidable movement with respect to the tube 16 by means of pins 26 and 28 extending therethrough as illustrated in FIG. 8. FIG. 8 illustrates the wheels 22 and 24 in a position adjacent the frame means 12 while the broken lines indicate the position to which the wheels are moved for purposes of transport. The numeral 30 generally designates a hitch 30 which is selectively longitudinally slidably mounted on the frame means 12 so that the hitch 30 may be moved from the position of FIG. 8 to the position of FIG. 2. The frame means 12 is maintained in a substantially horizontal position during the erection process by a support post 32 which may be of any convenient design such as a jack means or the like.

A pair of spaced apart plates 34 and 36 are rotatably mounted on tube 16 and are secured to the exterior surface of a boom member 38 by welding or the like. Boom member 38 has a base plate 40 secured to the lower end thereof by any convenient means such as by welding, bolts, etc. Boom member 38 is substantially square in section and is of a hollow configuration as illustrated in the drawings. The numeral 42 designates a boom member which is slidably mounted in boom member 38 while the numeral 44 designates a boom member which is slidably mounted in boom member 42. A boom member 46 is slidably mounted in boom member 44 as illustrated in the drawings.

A hydraulic cylinder 48 of the double acting type is mounted within the boom means 14 and is normally positioned within boom member 46 when the various boom members are in their retracted position. Hydraulic cylinder 48 is connected to a control valve by conduits 52 and 54 and valve 50 is connected to a pump 56 by conduits 58 and 60 as illustrated in FIG. 13. Pump 56 is driven by a motor 62 and is operatively connected to a reservoir 64 by conduits 66 and 68. Hydraulic cylinder 48 includes a rod 70 slidably extending therefrom having a pad 72 secured to the upper end thereof as illustrated in FIG. 10. Each of the boom members are provided with an opening extending therethrough adapted to facilitate the insertion of a pin 74 therethrough to effect the connection between the boom member and the pad 72 on the rod 70. The numeral 76 generally designates a clamp means which is adapted to extend around the lower end of each of the boom members as illustrated in FIG. 12 to prevent the inner boom member from moving downwardly with respect to the boom member which embraces the same.

The numeral 78 refers to a conventional hydraulic jack means which is pivotally secured at its base end to the frame means 12 and which is pivotally secured at its broad end to the boom means 14 as illustrated in FIGS. 8 and 9. Jack means 78 is operated in conventional fashion to cause the extension of the rod 80 to cause the boom means 14 to be pivotally moved from the position illustrated by broken lines in FIG. 9 to the position illustrated by solid lines in FIG. 9. The movement of the boom means 14 to its vertical position causes the base plate 40 to be pivoted into engagement with the supporting surface 82 which. is usually a concrete slab or the like. The engagement of the base plate 40 with the surface 82 causes the wheels 22 and 24 to be raised therefrom as illustrated in FIG. 9.

The numeral 84 designates a ring shaped support which is detachably secured to the upper end of boom member 46 and which is adapted to be received by the central opening in the roof structure of the building to support the same. A plurality of cables 86 are detachably secured to the upper end of boom member 46 by any convenient means and extend downwardly and outwardly therefrom as illustrated in the drawings. The lower ends of cables 86 are detachably secured to a supporting ring 88 as illustrated in FIG. 4. Supporting ring 88 is comprised of a plurality of angles 90 which are arcuate in shape and which are detachably secured together by any convenient means. For purposes of description, each of the angles 90 will be described as having a horizontal :portion 92 and a vertical portion 94 extending downwardly from the outer end thereof. A plurality of supporting brackets 96 are detachably secured to the supporting ring 88 as best illustrated in FIGS. 3, 4 and and are adapted to engage the underside of the roof structure to support the same. Each of the brackets 96 include a pair of spaced apart hook members 98 and 100 which extend over the upper portion of horizontal portion 92 and which have an angle member 102 secured to the outer end thereof by welding or the like. Plate 104 is secured to angle member 102 by bolts 106 extending therethrough as illustrated in FIG. 5. The plates 104 are adapted to engage the underside of various of the roof panels 108 to add rigidity to the roof structure during the erection of the building and to add stability to the structure during the construction thereof. The building 110 includes a roof structure 112 and a wall structure 114. Roof structure 112 is comprised of the plurality of roof panels 108 which are detachably secured together while Wall structure 114 is comprised of a plurality of wall panels 116 which are detachably secured together. For purposes of description, the wall panels 116 are secured together in horizontal rows 118, 120, 122 and 124.

The erection means would be positioned on the supporting surface 82 by any convenient means such as a vehicle 126 by means of the hitch The leveling means 32 would be lowered so that the frame means 12 would remain in a substantially horizontal position when hitch 30 is detached from the vehicle 126. The wheels 22 and 24 would ordinarily be positioned in the position indicated by broken lines in FIG. 8 during the transport operation. The hitch 30 is moved from the position of FIG. 8 to the position of FIG. 2 after being disconnected from the vehicle 126 so that the same will not interfere with the erection operation. Boom means 14 is then moved from the position indicated by broken lines in FIG. 9 to a vertical position by means of the jack means 78 which causes the wheels 22 and 24 to be raised from the supporting surface 82 as previously described. The boom means 14 is positioned in the exact center of the supporting surface 82 which is usually a concrete slab to insure that the building will be erected on its exact desired location. A plurality of anchor cables 128 are then secured to boom member 38 adjacent the upper end thereof and extended downwardly and outwardly therefrom as illustrated in FIG. 3. The lower ends of the cables 128 are secured to the anchor bolts or the like which are provided in the supporting surface 82 which are ordinarily used to secure the building to its slab. The support 84 is then operatively connected to the upper end of boom member 46 and the supporing ring 88 is then assembled and the cables 86 are secured to the upper end of boom member 46 as previously described. FIG. 2 illustrates the support 84 and the supporting ring 88 in an assembled condition prior to the building erection process being initiated. It should be noted that the supporting ring 88 can be of any diameter and could be positioned at any desired level with respect to the upper end of the boom member 46 depending upon the size and configuration of the building to be erected. For example, the apparatus could be used on a building wherein the roof structure was such that the supporting ring 88 would initially be positioned closely adjacent the supporting surface 82 or could be supported in the position illustrated in FIG. 2.

The roof structure 112 of the building 110 is first assembled by securing the various roof panels 108 together. The roof panels 108 are assembled or secured together on the support 84 and supporting ring 88 as illustrated in the drawings. Support 84 is positioned adjacent the central opening 130 of the building 110 and serves to position the roof structure 112 with respect to the boom means 14 and also aids in the assembly of the roof structure. The sup-' port brackets 96 are positioned on the supporting ring 88 so that the plates 104 will engage the underside of the roof panels 108 between the side edges thereof as illustrated in the drawings.

Initially, the rod 70 of hydraulic cylinder 48 is in a withdrawn position and the pin 74 would be extended through the opening formed in the upper end of boom member 46 and against the pad 72 to effect the connection between the boom member 46 and the hydraulic cylinder means. When the roof structure 112 is completed, the first row of wall panels 116 are secured to the roof structure 112. It can be appreciated that if the lower end of the roof structure 112 is positioned closely adjacent the supporting surface upon completion thereof, it is simply necessary to raise the roof structure by means of the by draulic cylinder 48 to permit the wall panels 116 to be secured thereto. When the boom member 46 has been extended to its prescribed length and limits, a clamp means 76 is secured to the lower end thereof which prevents the boom member 46 from moving downwardly within the boom member 44. When clamp 76 has been mounted on the lower end of boom member 46, the rod 70 is withdrawn into the hydraulic cylinder 48 until the pad 72 is aligned with the opening formed in boom member 46 adjacent the lower end thereof. The pin 74 is then inserted through the opening formed in the lower end of boom member 46 and above the pad 72 to effect the connection between the hydraulic cylinder means and the boom member 46. The extension of the rod 70 by the hydraulic cylinder means 48 causes the boom members 46 and 44 to be raised with respect to the boom member 42. When rod 70 has been fully extended, a clamp means 76 is positioned around the lower end of boom member 44. The rod 70 is lowered until pad 72 is aligned with the opening near the lower end of boom member 44. This procedure is repeated until all of the boom members have been raised. Thus, the boom members are selectively and successively extended by means of the pin 74 and the clamp 76 to cause the roof structure 112 and the wall panels 116 to be raised therewith as the various rows of wall panels 116 are assembled. The structure is extremely stable during the assembly or erection operation and the building can actually be constructed by as little as one or two men. When the building has been completed, the boom members 46 are successively lowered by reversing the extension process just described. When the boom members have been lowered into the boom means 14, the supporting ring 88 is disassembled and removed from the interior of the bin through the door provided in the building 110. The boom means 14 is then pivoted from its vertical positionto the position illustrated by broken lines in FIG. 19 which causes the wheels 22 and 24 to engage surface 84 as previously described. The anchor cables 128 are removed from the anchor bolts in the supporting surface 82 and the lowermost row of wall panels 116 would be secured to those anchor bolts.

The wheels 22 and 24 would ordinarily be moved to the position illustrated by broken lines in FIG. 8 to reduce the width of the apparatus to facilitate its removal from the interior of the building through the door provided. The hitch 39 may also be extended outwardly through the door to permit the vehicle to pull the device from the interior of the building.

Thus it can be seen that an economical but efficient means has been provided for erecting buildings which is extremely stable and safe. Thus it can be seen that the device accomplishes all of its stated objectives.

What is claimed is:

1. In an erection means for a building having a roof structure with a plurality of wall sections secured thereto,

a portable frame means,

and a boom means mounted on said frame means and being vertically movable,

said boom means adapted to be detachably secured to to the roof section of the building whereby the upward vertical movement of said boom means will cause said roof structure to be raised so that the wall sections can be secured thereto,

said frame means being provided with a pair of spaced apart wheel members which are movable towards each other to permit the removal of said frame means and boom means from the interior of said building when the erection thereof is completed,

said boom means being pivotally secured to said frame means so that said boom means can be pivoted from a transport position to a vertical position,

said boom means including a base means which is pivotally moved into engagement with the supporting surface thereby raising said wheels from the supporting surface.

2. In an erection means for a building having a roof structure with a central opening formed therein, and a plurality of wall sections secured to the roof section,

a wheeled frame means, and a boom means mounted on said frame means and being vertically movable,

said boom means adapted to be detachably secured to the roof section of the building whereby the upward vertical movement of said boom means will cause said roof structure to be raised so that the wall sections can be secured thereto,

said boom means having a first support means secured thereto which is received by the central opening of said roof structure,

a supporting ring means being detachably secured to the upper end of said boom means and being positioned below and outwardly thereof and adapted to operatively engage the underside of the room structure to support the same,

said ring means being comprised of a plurality of detachable ring sections,

a plurality of supporting plate means detachably secured to said ring means, said supporting plate means engaging the underside of said roof structure.

3. In an erection means for a building having a roof structure and a plurality of wall sections secured to the roof section, the roof structure having a central apex area,

a portable frame means,

and a boom means mounted on said frame means and being vertically movable,

said boom means adapted to be detachably secured to the roof section of the building whereby the upward vertical movement of said boom means will cause said roof structure to be raised so that the wall sections can be secured thereto,

said boom means having supporting means secured thereto which centrally positions the roof section thereover so that the central apex area of the roof section is centrally positioned with respect to the longitudinal axis of said boom means,

said boom means being comprised of a first hollow boom member which is pivotally secured to said frame means, said first boom member having a plurality of other hollow boom members telescopically slidably received therein, a hydraulic cylinder means positioned in said first boom member so as to be received by the innermost other boom member, said hydraulic cylinder means having a slidable rod extending therefrom which is adapted to be selectively detachably secured to each of said other boom members to cause the extension of said boom means, said hydraulic cylinder means having a length substantially equal, when said slidable rod is extended from said cylinder means to the combined length of said first boom member and one of said other boom members.

4. In an erection means for a building having a roof structure with a plurality of wall sections secured thereto,

a portable frame means,

and a boom means mounted on said frame means and being vertically movable,

said boom means adapted to be detachably secured to the roof section of the building whereby the upward vertical movement of said boom means will cause said roof structure to be raised so that the wall sections can be secured thereto,

said frame means being provided with a pair of spaced apart wheel members for transporting the frame means,

said boom means being pivotally secured to said frame means so that said boom means can be pivoted from a transport position to a vertical position,

said frame means having a width less than the width of the door of the building so that the frame means may be removed from the interior of the erected building through the building door.

5. In an erection means for a metal building having a conical shaped roof structure with a central opening formed therein, and a plurality of wall sections secured to the roof section,

a wheeled frame means,

and a boom means mounted on said frame means and being vertically movable,

said boom means adapted to be detachably secured to the roof section of the building whereby the upward vertical movement of said boom means will cause said roof structure to be raised so that the wall sections can be secured thereto,

said boom means having a first support means secured thereto which engages the roof structure at its central opening, a plurality of cables secured to said boom means and extending outwardly and downwardly therefrom,

a supporting ring means connected to the lower end of said cables adapted to operatively engage the un- 8 derside of the roof structure adjacent the lower end 3,153,303 10/ 1964 Wheeler 52-73 thereof to support the same. 3,233,375 2/1966 Durand 52118 3,372,431 3/ 1968 Lowes 52749UX References Cited 3,385,014 5/1968 Haug 52-143X UNITED STATES PATENTS 5 PRICE C. FAW, JR., Primary Examiner 2,485,475 10/1949 Brenneman 135--15X 2,527,729 10/1950 Hofl. 1351 U.S. Cl. X.R. 2,705,083 3/1955 Soderstrorn 52-118X 3,092,216 6/1963 Tye 52123X 52433 749 

